Pursuit leads to arrest in De Luz

DE LUZ -- A pursuit through the winding hills west of Temecula
ended not far from the San Diego County line Thursday morning with
the arrest of a Fallbrook man on suspicion of vehicle theft,
authorities said.

The vehicle, a black Saturn Vue Hybrid equipped with an OnStar
navigation/communication system, was first spotted about 8 a.m. in
Murrieta, said Murrieta police Sgt. Larry Preston.

"The owner of the car called OnStar to report it stolen,"
Preston said. "OnStar then called the Riverside Sheriff's
Department and told them the car was in Murrieta. The sheriff's
department then called us."

Murrieta officers saw the car traveling southbound on Jefferson
Avenue, near the Murrieta and Temecula border. However, because of
traffic, they were unable to get to the vehicle, Preston said.

Murrieta officers then notified Temecula police that the SUV was
about to enter their city. About 8:15 a.m., a Temecula patrol
officer saw the vehicle near Winchester and Diaz roads.

"When the driver spotted the officer, he took off," said
sheriff's Sgt. Kevin McDonald.

The SUV traveled along Diaz, turned west on Rancho California
Road and headed up the hill into the rural De Luz area.

At some point, the car ran over a curb, damaging the left front
tire, said Preston. That tire starting coming apart as the vehicle
sped up Rancho California, leaving pieces of rubber behind as it
went.

Eventually, more than a dozen police and other emergency
vehicles joined the pursuit, which varied in speed from 10 to 45
miles per hour, officials said.

The suspects traveled about five miles to the end of Rancho
California Road. There, the SUV turned left on De Luz Road and
continued for another three miles before the tire completely
disintegrated and the vehicle came to a stop near Via Raquel.

A man and woman were detained after the SUV stopped, McDonald
said.

The driver, Anselmo Rios, 20, was arrested on suspicion of
vehicle theft and evading a peace officer, according to a Sheriff's
Department news release. Rios was booked at Southwest Detention
Center where he was being held Thursday night in lieu of $5,000
bail, jail records state.

A woman who was in the SUV was also detained. No information
about her or whether she was arrested was available Thursday
night.